Re: What are folks using for serial consoles these days?

[Dan Mahoney via NANOG <nanog () lists nanog org>]

> On Dec 22, 2025, at 5:09 PM, Josh Reynolds via NANOG <nanog () lists nanog org> wrote:
>
> I have been known to do this as well. Works quite good, and supports
> wireguard and zerotier out of the box.

Yes, I tried to say in my own post that we do this with an Actual FreeBSD system (which we can provision with our usual 
provisioning stuff (an idrac and puppet) and something like this: 
https://www.newegg.com/serialgear-usbg-16com-rm-usb-to-db9/p/0Y3-00DC-00015.  We don't attach serials to *every device* 
(i.e. servers) any more now that this is reasonable and doesn't require a f'kn Java Applet, but we do leave all our 
switches and routers full-time connected.  Plus things like our NASes.

(And we already *have* those, *and* the unix boxen to power those, the BSD machines are just due for replacement, so 
we're asking The Questions).  

I'm trying to evaluate the use-case of:

Does buying a purpose-built serial device...

...which may have a closed-source SSH implementation (ala Cicso and APC devices I've been burned by in the past).
...which may at any point go EOL and stop getting firmware...
...which doesn't have its own way to heal *itself* (With a PC, I can at least ask the noc techs to just go into the 
bios and run a cross-connect to my own infra, and reinstall via iLOM)
...and which would force us to recable some weird-ass things like this: 
https://hardwaredirect.pl/console-cable-dell-powervault-me4012-me4024-sc4020-db9-to-3-5mm-4r3wx
...but which might be more power-efficient than the cheapest Dell server I can buy right now, and which would occupy 
only 1RU versus 2, and only 1/2 power plugs over 2/3 per cabinet.

Nobody's jumped up and said "This ioGear/Cyclades/Avocent thing rocks, and it'll have firmware for the next 10 years, 
for sure".  My network hardware reseller hasn't gotten back to me (but it is Christmas week),

So I'm inclined to stick with our existing solution.  I just need to find a basic $300 server that I can get an actual 
warranty on, that I can send a reboot command to via IPMI if need be.

-Dan
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